Oops
by marauder.eskimo
Summary: Everything always seems to go wrong for Emily. Clumsy? yes. Funny? that's what i'm hoping. Angstyromancecomplete insanity? uh hu. marauders? HELL YEAH! JPLE RLOC SBOC PPno one! hahahaha!
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: As if.**_

"Get up Higgins! NOW YOU LAZY BUGGER! NOW!"

Emily sat up. Towering over her was her master, Mister Frank. He was head servant of the household, and was in charge of every chore in the country mansion. Emily had been born in the servant quarters, and served the family the whole of her life. She knew nothing different. She did as well as she could, she was polite and honest. She was just a little clumsy, was all.

"Master Regulas will have his clothes by eight, make sure you're dressed or you'll be sorry!"

That was another thing. Emily worked in the mansion owned by the Blacks. They were a rich, pureblood family who took pride in being better and higher class than everyone else. Emily didn't agree with their ideas, but she had never truly intended leaving the Blacks. That was, until her letter arrived.

Mister Frank had woken her, and she had hurried to get into her uniform. She had to prepare her master's clothes. Her chores were mainly taking care of Regulas, a son of the Blacks. That morning, she did her usual routine of washing and drying Regulas' clothes and placing them in his room, and then bringing in his breakfast after he was changed.

After brining in her master's clothes and retreating, Emily was wheeling in Regulas' breakfast on a silver trolley entwined with silver serpents, when she tripped on the hem of her long dress. She hit the floor with a thud. Regulas didn't bat an eyelid, but smirked to himself when he heard Mister Frank's voice bellowing from the corridor.

"HIGGINS!"

Emily had picked herself up quickly and gave Regulas his food, before bowing low, and hurrying out of his large room. When she had closed the door, Mister Frank immediately began.

"HIGGINS! HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU? YOU'RE A DISGRACE HIGGINS! YOU'RE NOT EVEN FIT TO BE A SERVANT! YOU KNOW I COULD THROW YOU OUT ON THE STREET HIGGINS! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU! I - "

At that moment Regulas' head appeared from around the door. Both Mister Frank and Emily bowed, before Regulas said,

"Take it somewhere else, Frank. I can't stand all the shouting going on outside my room. I need this time for rest."

"Certainly Master Black. I apologise most sincerely."

Emily found it hard to believe that a man could change his temper so quickly, but bowed to Regulas before following Mister Frank down to the servants quarters. The shouting carried on for some time, and Emily just stood crying quietly, whilst she listened to Mister Frank shout. She had heard it all before. It wasn't the first time she'd done something wrong, but it was even worse to do something wrong in front of a master. She opened her mouth to apologise, but received a smack around the face before to could even utter a word. It was not her place to say anything. She was just a servant.

XxX

Later that day, Sirius went for a walk around the mansion grounds. He walked often, because he had no good company in the house, and wanted to get away from it all. He couldn't wait to get back to Hogwarts, even if meant enduring the Slytherins. He could cope with them, but his parents were driving him nearer and nearer to insanity. All they could talk of was the Dark Arts. Many a time Sirius had been to Knockturn alley with his father, to buy and sell all kinds of artefacts used by dark wizards. Sirius had been born into a dark family, and he often wished he hadn't. He hated his father and mother, and their pureblood ways. He had tried to care for his brother Regulas, but he was just as narrow-minded as his parents were. Sirius couldn't wait to get away.

As he was walking, Sirius looked across the lake, where he could see the mansion in all it's glory. He hated living there; the money, the servants, the lifestyle. It was horrid, watching people run around after you and knowing they do it because they're afraid of you. As a child he had enjoyed being waited on, but after he started his first year at Hogwarts his ideas had changed. Now the thought of it made him sick, and he refused anything a servant tried to give him. He couldn't wait to get away, and loved the time he spent at the Potter's house. He would see his friends again soon.

Regulas looked over all 86 windows on the front of the mansion. He could see his bedroom, the dining parlour, the servants quarters. They were on the first floor of five, and at the very corner of the house he could see a long line of sheets hanging down, as a young girl attempted to climb down. Regulas smirked as he walked back around the side of the lake. At the rate the girl was going he arrived below her way before she was near the bottom.

Regulas stood looking up, waiting for her as Higgins cautiously dropped her case to the floor below. Just as her feet were about to touch the ground she let out an involuntary sneeze, which caused her to fall painfully to the grass below. He laughed to himself at the sight of her on the floor.

"Higgins. I should have known."

Emily sat on the floor, but looked up and stared daggers at him. Her eyes were swollen and red, she'd obviously been crying for a while. Black pretended not to see her glare.

"You don't have to do attempt to run away every time you get a beating. I'm sure it's not all that bad Higgins. You only tripped over this time. Wasn't as bad as the tea incident was it?"

Emily continued to sit.

"He hit twice as hard though."

Regulas flinched as he heard her speak back. He didn't ignore it. She had done this before, trying to escape. Regulas was always the one to catch her, but she never learnt her lesson.

Regulas held out his hand, and dragged Emily up. She wiped the fresh tears from her face, picked up her case and said,

"Thank you Mister Black. I'll be on my way now."

He chuckled to himself.

"You honestly think I'm going to let you go? I thought you were a bit smarter than that Higgins."

This time she really did stare daggers at him. If looks could kill he would be long gone. But she turned and began to walk away, her case banging clumsily against her legs. Regulas watched her for a moment, her long brown hair swishing behind her. Then with a flick of his wand, she was up in the air, hanging by her ankles. She didn't even have time to scream, as he had used a silencing charm too. Emily hated how he could do magic. She always seemed to forget until he got her.

So there she was, hanging by the ankle her arms folded. She had a look of annoyance on her face, as she dropped her case to the floor. Once again, Regulas Black was staring up at Emily, and he found it rather amusing. He even told her so.

"As amused as you are, Mister Black," she said, "I beg that you'll let me down so I can leave this ruddy place."

"Manners, Higgins, or I'll call Frank."

Emily now felt a flicker of fear, but hid it quickly.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh I would Higgins, and you know it. If I let you down you have to promise to go back to your room, otherwise we can stay here all night and wait till Frank comes and finds you in the morning. I've done it before, Higgins, and I'll be more than happy to do it again."

"Let her down Regulas."

It was Sirius. He ran up towards the house, laughing to himself at the scene as he did. He had seen this exact picture before, last time Emily had tried to escape.

Regulas glared at his brother. They never spoke to eachother, mainly because Sirius had shut himself away. Sirius had tried many times to talk Regulas into seeing reason, but Regulas seemed rooted in his ways now. Sirius had given up hope, and decided to leave him alone.

Regulas removed the spell on Emily. He didn't let he down gracefully, but with a thud that was sure to add to her other cuts and bruises. She was glad she had changed out of her uniform; that dress would have been extremely revealing when she was upside-down. Regulas seemed to know what she was thinking.

"Next time, wear the dress. I'll get more pleasure out of it. I'm sick of cleaning up runaway servants."

Emily felt herself getting even madder at these words. She tried to run at him as he walked away, but something knocked her down, causing her to roll painfully to the bottom of the bank. When she finally stopped, lying in a heap at the bottom, she managed to see what had knocked her down. A large, black dog lay just a metre away, and Emily screamed with frustration as she lay her head back down on the grass. Sirius was such an arse.

"I could have got him! You heard what he said to me! I can't believe you let him get away with that!"

"Emily, you know that you can't have attacked him. You'll be thanking me soon enough you know."

Emily didn't say anything. She just lay there and looked up at the starry sky as the boy next to her rose, and began to walk slowly towards the house.

XxX

Emily had stayed crumpled on the ground long after the Blacks had returned to the house. She had cried herself to sleep, and woken in the morning, only to climb back to her room, just minutes before Mister Frank arrived. He took no notice of her red and bloodshot eyes. He told her to get on with her job, and she did so. She took much less time in preparing her Master's clothes, but was careful not to trip when she took in his breakfast. As she placed it next to his bed, he grabbed her arm and stared straight into her eyes.

"If anyone," he said, "Anyone at all, hears about last night, I will personally make sure it is the last thing you ever do. Is that clear, Higgins?"

"Yes Master Black."

She bowed and quitted the room quickly after that, and returned to her quarters equally as fast. She sat in her room, waiting till she got orders. She didn't, and for some time she sat alone on her bed, just thinking.

She had almost attacked Regulas! She hadn't even wanted to do it, but sometimes he made her so angry. He was so patronising and slimy. He got away with everything. Though sometimes, when he went to his father's study (which could be for hours at a time) she could hear screaming, though she never knew why. He would leave the room looking just the same as he left it, maybe with less of a strut. Regulas always strutted; it was in his proud nature. His father did it too, but Regulas probably didn't even realise. Even Sirius had picked up the 'family strut'. Emily thought Regulas looked like a git every time he did it, which was all the time. That's all Regulas was: a slimy, rich, pureblood git. Sirius wasn't nearly as bad but he had the looks and money and maybe some charm. He was very accomplished though; he knew magic like the back of his hand. He used it all the time at home, even though Emily was his target most of the time. She hated that.

Emily's thoughts were interrupted, when a brown barn owl tapped hard on her window. She opened it, and took the letter of the owl's leg, and it flew away. She looked down at the envelope. It was made of fresh parchment, with the address written in bottle green ink. The address amused her, it read,

_To Miss Emily Higgins_

_2nd room in the servants quarters_

_First floor_

_Black Mansion_

_&tc_

Emily wondered how they knew where she slept. She thought it might have been from Sirius, since he was the only one who knew exactly where she slept, who would ever bother to send her a letter. She opened the envelope as she wondered, and took the parchment form inside.

_Miss Higgins,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…_

She couldn't contain a scream of surprise and joy as she read that first line, and had to hide the letter quickly as Mister Frank smacked her round the head and left again. Her eyes watered as she read the rest.

_Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

_Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

Emily looked through the list that the letter had mentioned, and inside the envelope, was another note, that read,

_I understand that you turned 14 during the course of May, and so will be starting Hogwarts with the 5th year students. Due to this fact, you will be taking extra lessons with some of the professors, and myself, throughout the first term. I also know that you work for the Black household, but will be replaced by a house-elf, who will carry on your duties until you return to the mansion during any holidays, when you are under the responsibility of the Blacks again._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore._

As she read this last line, Emily heard loud footsteps, and then frantic knocking on her door. She opened it cautiously, and Sirius hurried in and closed the door behind him. He was out of breath.

"What did the letter say?"

How did he know?

"What?"

"What did the damn letter say?" Sirius' voice was rising.

"It's from Hogwarts. But how did you - "

"No time. You've got to get out of here. They're furious – he'll be down here any minute."

"I don't understand! How do your parents know?"

Sirius didn't say anything. He was already picking up the rope of sheets Emily had used the night before. He was lowering them out of the window when he said,

"Get your case!"

Emily did as she was told, and began shuffling her way down from the window. To her surprise, Sirius followed her, and jumped to the floor as they heard the bedroom door burst open. Sirius grabbed Emily's hand and pulled her around the corner. They heard things being thrown and torn; the Blacks were going mad. When he thought it might be safe, Sirius ran across the grounds, pulling Emily along with him. She still had the letter in her hand, and as they reach the tall black gates of the mansion, they swung open. The two of them could hardly breathe, but Emily managed to swing her arms around Sirius, and thank him between each heavy breath. He looked slightly alarmed by such a display, but patted her on the head all the same.

"Sirius," Emily began, "You know – your parents – are going to kill you – when they find out!"

"I know."

"I can't – let that – happen."

"Yes. You can."

Tears were filling Emily's eyes. She knew he would suffer because of this, probably more than she could imagine. Sirius knew it too, but had to do it all the same.

"You need to get to the leaky cauldron. Take your letter, and ask them to let stay, under the name of Black. Tell him to pay it from vault 113." He took a moneybag from his pocket and handed it to her.

"Use this to get your school supplies. Then stay at the leaky cauldron. I'll come for you when it's time to get to school. Ok?"

Emily hugged him one last time, then walked down the gravel path. Sirius stared after her. She was leaving at last.

XxX

_**Authors note:  
FINALLY! i have been pondering (i like that word :) on whether to put this up yet. those of you who have read my profile know that this is two of my stories meshed into one big delictable goo! it's just frustrating trying to link them together and for it to still sound good... if that makes sense... whatever - just go with me people! **_

**_p.s if any of it doesn't really make sense (it USED to be about the malfoys blah blah blah) then just shove it in a review or something and i'll see what i can do! i promise to update often!_**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: It's completely pointless.**

Emily had arrived at the leaky Cauldron two days after she had left Sirius in front of the Black Mansion. She wouldn't be able to tell you how she managed it because she barely knew herself. But she was there, that was all that mattered. She did exactly what Sirius had told her, and was soon sitting in her room at the Leaky Cauldron inn. She didn't go into Diagon alley for a few days, and just kept to her room, apart from mealtimes. When she finally decided to venture into the busy street, she found herself feeling overwhelmed by the size of it all. There were so many people, all talking and laughing, everyone seemed to know everyone. People would stop suddenly to wave or call out to someone, or go down a side alley to more shops, hidden from view.

Emily looked down at her list. She decided to get her school robes first, and headed towards a shop, with a sign above saying _'Madam Malkin's robes for all occasions' _She headed inside, and was welcomed by a squat, smiling witch dressed in mauve. She showed Emily to a stool, where she started to measure her arms, around her waist and around her forehead.

"Hogwarts m'dear? Yes, I've got all the things you need. But you're not a first year are you? I've never seen you before," a scowl came across her face, "I suppose you've been shopping at Twilfitt and Tattings…"

"No, I had my robes sent to me," Emily lied. Emily was good at lying; she had done it often at the Black's household. Usually to Mister Frank, if he let her speak that is.

"Well, it's much better to shop here in person if I say so myself. Seem to fit much better when fitted personally."

After she had finished measuring Emily, Madam Malkin had shown a short, round boy to the stool next to her, and begun measuring him. He had entered the shop with two of his friends; a golden haired boy reading a book and a tall, dark haired boy with round glasses. Emily observed the trio for a moment before looking down at the floor. They all looked her age, but she wanted to wait for Sirius before talking to anyone. She didn't want to say anything wrong.

The first boy had stepped up rather clumsily, and loosing his balance on the stool, fell promptly into Emily, knocking her to the floor with an 'oomph'.

He muttered a very rude word before picking himself up, and holding a hand out to Emily.

"Sorry! Shoelace untied… Sorry… Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," said Emily, getting to her feet. She brushed some dirt off the clothes before standing up straight. "I do it myself all the time! I'm such a klutz!"

The trio didn't say anything. When she had stood up, they could see her face properly. They were transfixed. She wasn't the prettiest of girls, but she had a kind of glow around her, that made her seem bouncy and light. Her brown hair flowed eloquently behind her, and she flashed a smile at them. Peter's jaw physically dropped, before Remus gave him a hard nudge in the ribs and he closed it quickly. Emily noticed them all staring at her, and looked down at the floor again. She had already ruined her plan of waiting for Sirius.

James had taken no time before introducing himself, and his two companions.

"That's Remus Lupin, this is Peter Pettigrew and I'm James Potter."

Emily's eyes involuntarily opened wider. The Marauders. She'd heard their names mentioned so many times in the Blacks' presence. Sirius talked about them non-stop, and Regulas always talked about them with malice, even hate. It seemed he was the butt of their pranks whilst at Hogwarts.

"Emily Higgins, nice to meet you."

Remus felt inclined to carry on speaking to the girl, and felt curious about her. He recognised the name Higgins, but didn't say anything about it. Instead He asked Emily of her age.

"I'm fourteen."

Peter's eyes seemed to light up at the statement.

"Same as us then. You'll be in fifth year."

"What? Oh… yes I suppose so."

Remus found this response even more unusual. The girl seemed uninterested by the prospect of Hogwarts. He continued to question politely.

"So why are you starting in fifth year? Why weren't you here from the first?"

"I got my letter and here I am, that's all there is to it."

It was James who spoke next.

"So where are you from?"

It was the question Emily had been dreading. She didn't want to tell them, but she knew it would come out sooner or later. Just as she opened her mouth, she was distracted by a second tinkle of a bell as the shop door opened. All four of them looked, and sure enough, Regulas Black had entered Madam Malkin's shop, and was no doubt looking for Emily. He spotted her soon enough, and seeing her company, walked behind her and whispered,

"How much have you told them?"

_I should have known better than to expect a nice 'hello' or 'how are you'._ She thought. As Madam Malkin returned from the back room with Emily's robes in a bag, she stepped down from the school; Regulas grabbed Emily's hand and guided her pointedly towards the door. Not with force, just with an air of hurry. Emily kept her head down, and didn't look back once at the three Hogwarts students now staring confusedly after her.

As soon as they had left the shop Regulas had dragged her through the crowded street, and into the oh-so-familiar Knockturn alley. Emily had been there with Regulas before, on 'business'. He was always secretive.

Regulas was dragging Emily by the wrist, pulling her further and further away from help. She didn't trust Regulas anymore. She pulled back, forcing him to stop and pull back. Emily face was screwed up with effort as she dug her shoes into the ground. She wasn't going anywhere, and Regulas, sensing this to be pointless, let go of her wrist, causing her to fall flat onto the floor of Knockturn Alley. Regulas smirked to himself as Emily pulled herself up.

"Why have you brought me here?"

"I want to know where Sirius is."

"What?"

"You heard me. After you ran away, father was furious. Sirius disappeared and father was even angrier. Sirius wasn't there to get the blame, so guess who was? That's right, I got punished! BECAUSE OF SOME MUDBLOOD AND A TRAITOR!"

Emily barely had time to retort before Regulas came hurtling towards her. She scrambled out of the way and tried to run. Regulas was quick though, and hexed her as she ran. She fell forwards again, and stayed there. Regulas made to grab her, but a huge black dog jumped onto his back, crashing him down. He heard animal noises, and as he looked up he saw a stag with it's antlers pointing dangerous towards him, and a rat began to nibble at his ear. He watched as his brother's friend Remus went and picked Emily up off the floor.

The black dog was still on Regulas' back. It sat waiting until Remus had taken Emily up and out of Knockturn alley, then ran after them around the corner with the stag and the rat. Regulas looked up from the floor to see Sirius and his friends escort the girl into Diagon Alley.

XxX

_To my dearest, loveliest, sexiest Lily,_

_I have the Marauders round my house! Sirius has this girl who used to work for his parents, and she's surrounded by boys. Remus suggested I write to you and ask if you wanted to come to my house and spend time with her. She's going to Hogwarts. And bring Alice!_

_From your dearest, loveliest, sexiest James xXoxOxXO x._

_P.S. Will you go out with me?_

Lily actually laughed when she received this letter. James had been asking her out since their third year, and she had never accepted yet. It had become like a game; he asks, she says no, they laugh and it starts all over again. It was strange during the holidays because he wasn't there to ask her. Though he had written a couple of times to tell her he loved her. Which she quite liked. But this letter was really strange. Lily didn't know if James was joking about this girl to get her round his house again (yes he tried this before) but then again, Sirius did have _a lot _of girls.

Lily wrote to Alice, who wrote back from James' house. Yes, Alice was already there. _Stupid git. _Lily thought as she drove up the Potter's driveway. Her Mum and Dad looked delighted, but her sister Petunia had a very menacing look on her face. Lily was quite happy when she left her sister in the car.

"LILY"

Alice.

Alice, Alice, Alice.

"You have such a big gob!" cried Lily as she was pulled into a huge hug.

The two girls stood talking on the Potter's driveway for some time, until Lily asked her friend about this girl that had been mentioned in the letter.

"Wait till you meet her!" exclaimed Alice, "She's adorable! A bit on them clumsy side, you have to admit, but she's lovely. The loveliest!"

Lily's mind wandered back to James' letter. _From your dearest, loveliest, sexiest James. _What an idiot.

XxX

The marauders were all sat talking when Lily and Alice came in. There were several camp beds pulled out over the living room floor, and the four boys were deep in conversation. Alice pulled her friends into a separate room, where lots of squashy cushions and pillows scattered the floor. Lily put her bag down and they all sat in front of the fireplace. Alice looked ecstatic.

"So! Girl talk! Finally! I've spent four weeks with only a brother for company – I thought I was going to die!"

Lily and Alice began talking animatedly, mainly about Hogwarts. Names of students and Professors scattered throughout the conversation, but Emily didn't recognise any of them. She sat quietly watching the two girls. Lily and Alice's conversation then turned to the Marauders. Lily took out James' letter from her bag, and showed it to her friend. Alice burst out laughing as she passed to Emily. As she read it, even Emily had to smile.

"I always wondered who you two were you know," she said, "Whenever they were round the Black's house I can hear them above me through the ceiling. They talk about you quite a lot you know."

"Really?" Lily exclaimed, but Alice didn't look at all surprised.

"Of course they talk about Lily, James is in love with her! She is the only thing on his mind! He want's to hug you! He want's to kiss you! He wants to marry you! He wants to sh – "

"SHUT UP ALICE!"

Emily and Alice were rolling on the floor laughing as Lily sat red-faced and angry. Alice wiped a tear from her eye.

"Classic!" she said. Once she'd calmed down she sat massaging a stitch in her side.

"So Emily," lily said, turning to face the girl, "How long have you been at the Black's house?"

"As long as I can remember. I've been there since I was very small, maybe even my whole life."

"What about you're parents? Do they live there too?"

"No. They left me they, on the steps to the Black's Mansion." She saw the looks on her friends' faces and added, "Oh, don't feel sorry for me. I'm glad I don't know them, if they were so nice to leave at some strangers house."

"Isn't that a bit harsh?"

"No." said Emily, "I don't want to know the people that abandoned me, and I hope I never do. And anyway, I had Sirius for company, and that was nice enough."

Lily just stared at her incredulously. Alice broke the shocked silence.

"But why? Black's a pain in the ass."

"If you think Sirius is bad, you haven't met Regulas. Or his parents!"

"Are they really that horrible?"

"I knew Black didn't get along with his family, but I didn't know he had it _that_ bad."

Emily began to tell them about Mister Frank, and the other servants. The two girls cringed as she talked about the communal toilet in the servant quarters.

"The rooms weren't too small, but it was the stink coming from that thing that I really hated. That's why I tried to run away all they time. It was disgusting."

"You ran away?"

"Of course I did. I got my letter from Hogwarts and I escaped. Well, Sirius helped me escape."

Emily told them about the night, and then the morning of her escape. When she got to the part about Sirius giving her the money for her school supplies, Alice scoffed and looked at her incredulously.

"What? Black? That's insane! He likes people waiting on him! He's the laziest git I've ever seen!"

They was a loud 'Hey!' from the other room, and a several bangs against the door. When it had gone silent, you could hear a single 'shush!'

The girls got up and headed towards the door.

"Crap! They're coming! Quick!"

The girls glanced at eachother and had to stop themselves laughing. Alice pushed open the door.

There were the Marauders, sitting around the coffee table with a half-finished game of exploding snap. They all stared all the girls as they stood in the door with their hands on their hips.

James smiled.

"Can we help you Ladies?"

XxX

**Authors note: You like? No? Tell me either way. I like the last part, it makes me laugh! hehehe! so ermmm... LOVE! LOVE! LOVE! review :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**_Disclaimer: J.K.Rowling rocks. Enough said._**

A few weeks had passed whilst staying at the Potter's house, and nothing much had happened except games of quidditch in their back yard, and Peter getting stuck inside a wooden barrel full of melted Chocolate Frogs.

It was two weeks before Hogwarts was due to start and the three girls had already gone to bed. It was four in the morning, but the Marauders were still wide-awake.

"So, What do you guys think of Emily?" asked Sirius, for what was about the millionth time.

"She's nice," said Peter, "She helped me out of the barrel. You guys just stood and laughed!"

"Yeah, she is nice. But she not half a klutz!" sad James, "Like yesterday she tripped over my cat. I mean, I don't even have a cat!"

"Don't be stupid James, she said she'd tripped over a _rat, _not cat. Wormtail must've been asleep on the floor." Said Remus.

"Yes, but still. You don't trip up over a big fat ugly rat lying in the middle of the floor do you?"

"Hey!"

"Who cares if she's clumsy?" said Sirius, "You've all met my cousin Tonks, right? How many times have I told her to watch out for that stupid umbrella stand?"

"Nymphradora – "

"She'd kill you if she was here."

" – isn't that bad, Sirius."

"Well, that's besides the point!" said James, "We aren't talking about your cousin Sirius! What about Emily?"

"We've already said she's nice."

"Yeah, nice one Peter."

"So Padfoot, mate," said James grinning, "Do you fancy her?"

Remus sat up at this comment, and Peter looked at Sirius expectantly. James was always straight to the point.

"What? No way!"

"We've all seen the way you two flirt with eachother! You're all over her!"

"Listen, Emily rocks. Okay? But I've known her all my life. We've been friends for as long as I can remember. I couldn't go out with her. It would be too weird, and I don't like her in that way."

They all sat in silent for a while. They were all thinking. Remus was the next to speak.

"When's Emily's birthday?"

"What?"

"Emily's birthday."

"31st of May, why?

"Oh. It's just I've thought of something good to give her."

"Already?"

"Well, it's just because of something she said before, you know, when we were all listening at the door."

Remus told them about his idea. He had been thinking about it for several weeks. His fellow Marauders seemed to like it.

"Well it doesn't have to wait till her birthday."

"Yeah, If we sort it out, we could do it as a… 'Welcome to Hogwarts' present. She'll love it."

"If you look into Moony, we'll get her there."

XxX

The Marauders were smiling widely as they walked up the pathway, with Emily blindfolded and in their control. The path led to a small cabin beside a lake. The Marauders had refused to tell the girls were they were talking Emily, and they had travelled a long way, and gone through a lot of trouble to be there. They grabbed Emily's hand and made her knock three times on the wooden door. It was a few moments before it opened, and Sirius ripped off Emily's blindfold.

A young couple was standing in the doorway, both of them with auburn hair and freckles. Emily could have been gazing into the Mirror of Erised. Remus smiled.

"Mr and Mrs Higgins, this is Emily."

Emily's mouth opened with shock, but widened into a smile as she felt tears stinging the back of her eyes. Her parents. Her actual parents! The ones she'd been dreaming about for so long. They even looked like her! She stood there beaming before they all pulled eachother into a huge hug. The Marauders smiled at eachother as they watched the family re-unite in front of the small log cabin. It felt like years to Emily before they pulled apart, and Emily's Mother beckoned them all inside.

Emily continued to smile broadly as she stepped inside. She didn't know what she had expected, but it wasn't this; it may have looked like a small, humble cabin but these were wizards we're talking about. Inside the door was a large sitting room, enough to fit all of the visitors and more. The family sat down on the soft chairs, though the Marauders politely declined, saying they needed to get home.

The Higgins' just stared at eachother, tears wiped from their faces, and arms round eachother, before Mrs Higgins cried,

"My baby! My little girl!"

"Mum! Dad!"

Once they had clamed down slightly, and each had a cup of hot chocolate in their hands, they finally managed to talk to eachother without bursting into fits of emotion.

"Mum, what happened?"

Emily's parents looked solemnly at eachother, and taking eachothers hands they looked back towards their daughter.

"Darling, you have to understand. Your father and I, we were young. We had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. When we fell in love, we didn't realise it would move so quickly, and we would soon have a child."

"You mean, I was an accident? You didn't want me?"

"No darling, we wanted to have a child, but we hadn't expected to have you so soon, when we were still in school and – "

"You had me at school?" exclaimed Emily.

"Well, yes. We did," said her Father calmly. "We were in our 6th year, we weren't even of age yet."

"So what happened? Why did you get rid of me? Couldn't you have kept me at Hogwarts? Or come out of school or something?"

"Darling, it wasn't just our decision. We were still in school, and so we had to be… advised by our Headmaster. He told us we should finish our education, and that he would find somewhere for you to live, where you would be able to grow up around magic. We thought that the best idea at the time, darling. We wouldn't have been able to look after you whilst we were at school."

"Dumbledore assured us that you would go to Hogwarts when you were ready. We trusted Dumbledore. We believed in him, that he would make sure you were safe. We didn't know he would keep you a secret."

"What?"

"He didn't tell us where he'd taken you. We had no way of finding out. We were left in the dark till the end of our schooling, and then for the other 13 years of your life."

Emily sat in stunned silence. She kept opening her mouth, as if to say something, but would close it quickly again. Her parents exchanged worried glances, as their daughter got up quickly and began to pace around the room. Finally she pulled open the door and ran out into the fresh air, towards the darkening lake.

Emily looked around the beautiful landscape as she contemplated. The large, dark green lake was bordered with a thick forest of trees, towering high above it. The sun had already set, but was casting faint light across the sky still, allowing Emily to see around her.

_So it was Dumbledore. _She thought. _It was the Hogwarts Headmaster who was the cause of my terrible childhood. The reason I was kept down in the servant quarters in the mansion of some stuck-up pureblood-fanatic maniacs. It was Dumbledore who made sure my parents neglected me my entire life._

Emily stood by the lake's edge, watching the reflection of the bright, full moon ripple at the slight breeze. Coldness began to creep in on her, and she found herself shivering slightly, without a cloak. She looked towards the forest. She stared for so long that her eyes began to play tricks on her, trees swishing and shadows moving. She shook her head as she stared up at the moon. She had never seen it so bright before. She heard a rustling noise coming from the trees nearby, and wondered what kind of animals lived in the forest. The woods near the Black's mansion were filled with all kinds of magical creatures. She'd once had a nasty encounter with a Boggart in the Forest there, and Sirius had found her screaming, pinned against a tree; the Boggart had turned into a large spider. Sirius had laughed about it for weeks, maybe even months. Emily didn't think it was funny. She just hoped that rustling wasn't another Boggart.

Emily turned suddenly as she heard more rustling, rising quickly and cautiously off the floor. She felt around her pocket for her wand, and grasped onto it tightly. She gasped as the creature came into sight.

The wolf was hunched over, breathing heavily. It's teeth were bared as it started to move forwards. Emily ran. She didn't look back as she began to run back towards her parents' house. She could hear it's feet pounding against the ground, getting louder and louder; she was barely halfway when it got to her. The last thing she felt was being pushed hard to the floor, and a surge of pain as the wolf bit into her right shoulder. She didn't even scream.

**_Authors Note: SHOCKING! It's sad, but i had to do it. (wipes away tear) well... you get the jist. i made it quite short, just because it would be silly to do the rest just yet. well...erm... all very serious and whatnot. tell me what you think - i dont even care if you tell me it's crap - PLEASE!! SOMEONE JUST REVIEW ME!_**


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